Biography

Composer-pianist Wendy Hiscocks (1963) was born in Wollongong and studied composition with the celebrated Australian composer Peter Sculthorpe at the University of Sydney. In 1988 she moved to London and has received commissions, premières and broadcasts from distinguished soloists, ensembles, choirs and festivals from around the world. These have included Piers Lane and Roy Howat (piano), Rachel Nicholls and Elizabeth Connell (soprano), Madeleine Mitchell (violin), Michael Collins (clarinet), Sydney Chamber Choir, Jesus College Choir (Cambridge), Schubert Ensemble (London), King’s Lynn and Aldeburgh Festivals (UK), Spitalfields Festival (London), Bangor New Music Festival (Wales), Australian Festival of Chamber Music, Amadeus Festival (Geneva), Radio Suisse Romande, Radio France, ABC Radio and TV, BBC Radio 3 and the British Film Institute. She has completed a doctorate on the music of Arthur Benjamin, a subject which is now the focus of a biography she is writing and on whom she has lectured and presented an ABC radio documentary. As a pianist, Wendy has recorded Chabrier’s duo and duet repertoire for Edition Stil with Roy Howat and has performed at venues ranging from London’s Purcell Room to the Kusatsu International Summer Academy and Festival in Japan. She appears as the pianist on a CD of her chamber music recently released by the Symposium label. Her skills as composer-pianist are in demand for silent film accompaniment with appearances at the BFI South Bank, the Barbican, UK Festivals and Welsh National Opera.